posted by Justen Charters -
1 week ago

Body camera footage released by the 14th Circuit Solicitor's Office in South Carolina shows just how quickly things can take a turn for a police officer in the line of fire.

On January 1, 2016, police officer Quincy Smith responded to a call about an individual harassing patrons in a convenience store.

In the footage, Smith pulls his squad car right behind the suspect in question. As Smith prepares to confront the man, the suspect who has one hand in his pocket, and the other on his phone, makes eye contact with the officer.

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Smith radios in, “Dispatch E7, I will be out with that subject.” The officer exits the vehicle and asks the suspect to “come here.”

The man looks over at Smith a second time but continues to walk down the road. Smith asks him to “come here” again, to no avail.

At this point, the officer's tone changes. “Stop,” he orders. Smith continues to follow the suspect, requesting that he takes his hand out of his pocket.

But the man continues to walk away slowly, ignoring Smith's commands.

The officer turns up the heat and pulls out his taser. “If you don't stop, I'm going to tase you,” says Smith. “I'm not playing with you. Take your hands out of your pocket.”

The suspect takes his hand out of his pocket, revealing a handgun and pulls the trigger. Four gunshots ring out followed by Smith shouting “shots fired,” and then four additional shots. The footage becomes shaky, indicating Smith is running back to his squad vehicle.